Renovation work starts at troubled Wyndham Hotel

Over the last several years the hotel hit hard times with a Texas-based owner falling behind on mortgage and tax payments. Many online reviews were negative citing deferred maintenance, dated decor and lack of cleanliness.

This summer, the lender iBorrow in Los Angeles foreclosed on the property and created a new entity to hold and operate the hotel.

Plans have been filed for a $1.5 million renovation with the intention to rebrand to a Radisson. OKCTalk has learned executives were in town last month and a franchise agreement was executed.

Work has already begun on the exterior and the original pool cabanas have been demolished.

The property was originally the Hilton Inn Northwest and along with United Founders Tower, Founders Bank, the Continental Theater and several other adjacent buildings, it was part of a coordinated development in what was then a fast-developing area of Oklahoma City’s burgeoning northwest side.

Over the years it was operated as a Crowne Plaza and is currently under the Wyndham flag but many of the mid-century architectural details have been demolished or covered up. Recently the Founders Bank building to the north was demolished and the Continental met the same fate some time ago.

The new investment comes as many new hotels have been added along the Northwest Expressway corridor and as the former Marriott to the west is undergoing a complete overhaul into an Embassy Suites.

The $1.5 million building permit application for the 9-story structure does not include furniture, fixtures and equipment, which will represent an additional major investment.